Question

A canoe can go 24 km downstream in 3 hours. The return trip takes 4 hours. What is the speed of the current?

Answer 1

6

Answer 2

Thanks!

Answer 3

What would be a system of equations for this problem?

Answer 4

Here's how we go about,

You know that distance/speed = Time ?

Answer 5

Yep!

Answer 6

Ok.

We take 2 speeds into account in such questions.

1 - speed of the boat in still water - let it be x km/h

2 - speed of current - let it be y km/h (which is what we have to find.)

In upstream, we go against current so speed = (x-y) km/h,

in downstream we go with the current so speed = (x+y) km/h.

Now the boat goes 24 km upstream in 3 hours.

so the speed of the boat upstream = 24/3 = 8 km/hr.

Hence x-y = 8; fine till here?

Answer 7

oops sorry its downstream; so x+y = 8 :PP

Answer 8

Yeah! thank you so much!

Answer 9

so upstream it will be x-y = 6.

solve x+y = 8; x-y = 6.

Y = speed of stream will be found to be 1 km/h,

Answer 10

oh goodness! thank you! this helped a lot!

Answer 11

i hope that tallies with your book answer?

Answer 12

It's for an online class so I won't know until tomorrow afternoon!

Answer 13

oh lol ok..so good luck for that :)